British TV Shows Lockerbie Bomber in "Sick" Bed

Reporter skeptical of claims that al-Magrahi is really sick

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Undated Crown Office handout of Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi, who was convicted of the Lockerbie bombing. Megrahi was convicted in 2001 of murdering 270 people by blowing up Pan-Am flight 103 over Lockerbie 13 years earlier, but has always denied any involvement.

Jonathan Miller visited al-Magrahi in his Libyan hospital room for an exclusive interview at the behest of the bomber’s family, who wanted to show how sick he was with terminal cancer. Video footage showed Al-Magrahi wearing an oxygen mask, and in no mood to talk – especially when asked whether his release was tied to an oil deal between Libya and the UK. After leaving the hospital room, Miller lingered, hoping he might be able to secure a follow-up interview.

“A hospital staff member then passed me with a tray of food,” Miller said. “I saw a big plate of couscous, a tomato salad and a plate of olives. Was it destined for Megrahi? We don’t know.”

Al-Magrahi, the sole person convicted in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, which killed 270 people, was released last week from a Scottish prison and sent home under compassionate release.